Australian Government: Response to the Report of the Anzac Centenary Advisory Board

The response accepted 22 recommendations in full and three in principle. (The ‘in principle’ responses were to the recommendations on scholarships, grants and a conference, research on post-traumatic stress disorder, and artistic works with a commemorative theme.) The introductory remarks in the response read as follows. Among them, the fourth perhaps gives a slightly stronger emphasis than was in the Board’s report. The Government’s response was accompanied by a media release from the then Prime Minister but the new Government may well vary the response and priorities.

The Government’s response to the Board’s Report aims to achieve four main objectives. To:

ensure that the Anzac Centenary is commemorated in a very special way, as a poignant once-in-a-century opportunity for today’s Australians to honour the service and sacrifice of the Australians who fought in the Great War – and to reflect on the values and qualities that those Australians linked inextricably to the name, ‘Anzac’;

recognise a century or more of service and sacrifice by Australian servicemen and servicewomen, in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations in which Australia has, and continues to, participate. The Centenary is not simply about what happened a hundred years ago, as if it were past and gone. We fought then on a global scale to defend the values we shared with many other nations and this commitment continues today;

bring the Anzac Centenary to the Australian community, wherever they live, whatever their backgrounds or age. This will be led by a national flagship project using digital technology to reach out to every corner of Australia; and

give appropriate attention to facets of service that have been underplayed in the past; such as the impacts of service on those returning from war, the contributions of those on the Home Front, lesser known campaigns, and the service of particular sections of the Australian community who have gone largely unrecognised.